Worsfold happy to put West Coast contract talks on hold

John Worsfold will coach out the season before deciding whether to stay in the hot seat at West Coast

It's been 12 years. If it was my fourth year, I'd say I'm fresh as anything and bouncing around.

Eagles coach John Worsfold

WEST Coast coach John Worsfold believes he's still "miles away" from reaching his peak, but says he's more than happy to wait until the end of the season before deciding whether he wants to stay at the helm.

Worsfold's current two-year deal runs out at the end of the season, and the 2006 premiership coach has agreed with club chairman Alan Cransberg to delay contract negotiations.

The Eagles are among the flag favourites this season, and boast a squad that could potentially stay in premiership mode for another four or five years.

Worsfold has led the Eagles to finals action in eight of his 11 seasons in charge, and said he would love nothing more than to guide the club through another period of sustained success.

But the 44-year-old, who also captained West Coast to the 1992 and 1994 flags, will assess his passion for the job and family situation before deciding whether to re-sign.

"I think Mick Malthouse has got more tricks and more knowledge than he's ever had, and he's got a 15-year head start on me," Worsfold said.

"So I'm miles away from my peak.

"All things considering, I'd love to still be here coaching if everything fit.

"But just talking to Alan Cransberg, we felt there was no urgency to make any decision around it.

"I'm really comfortable with that.

"It's like mature players - they can lose their passion fairly quickly.

"So I want to get through this year and assess where I'm at, and where the club's at.

"It's been 12 years. If it was my fourth year, I'd say I'm fresh as anything and bouncing around.

"But my family's in a different situation now than where it was five years ago. So let's weigh up where we all sit."